Our SPOT program makes a big difference in the lives of local pets and their families and we need your help! We’re looking for volunteers to assist with spay/neuter transports, deliver pet food to families in need and help distribute pet supplies at local food pantries.
Whether you enjoy working directly with animals or connecting with people in our community, there’s a way for you to make a difference!
SPOT Spay/Neuter Team
Our SPOT team’s spay/neuter efforts have been instrumental in decreasing the number of unwanted pets coming into the shelter over its 16-year history. And, those efforts are continuing to rise as access to veterinary care becomes more challenging for our community. We are looking for 1-2 individuals to join our spay/neuter transport team to help meet the needs of our community pets.
These individuals would help with the drop off and pick up of community pets to be spayed/neutered. All activities would take place at the BCHS shelter and volunteers will not be responsible for driving the pets. Some experience with handling “feisty” cats is preferred as some of these pets are outdoor animals who are not overly excited about the process. Volunteers are welcome to sign up for only the morning or evening shift, or they can do both if they’d like.
Transports typically take place twice a month on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays, however days can vary depending on the spay/neuter clinic schedule. Morning drop-offs take place between 5:45am and 8am and returns take place between 5:45pm and 8pm. Age 18 or older.
SPOT Field Team
In addition to spaying/neutering, a huge part of our SPOT program is our bi-monthly field runs that deliver pet food to families in need in our community. This program helps to supplement a pet’s food needs when owners are facing unexpected difficulties with caring for their pets. In many instances, this has been key to keep a loved pet in its home!
Our field teams consist to two individuals who go out once every other month to deliver the needed pet food. These runs are done whenever is best for that team’s schedule during a specified week. All field runs are completed using a BCHS van and not personal vehicles. This is a great way to connect to our community while helping to keep families and their pets together.
Requirements: Ability to lift 50-pound bags of food. Includes the loading/unloading of bagged food, canned food and straw. Run days typically take between 6-8 hours depending on number of stops. Schedule is set in January so volunteers will know their assigned weeks for the entire year. Age 18 or older.
SPOT Pet Food Pantry Team
SPOT is now attending local human food pantries to work with community residents in need and providing pet supplies including food and other basic supplies as available. This is a great way to connect to our community while helping to keep families and their pets together. It is also an amazing chance to work on getting their animals spayed/neutered.
Food pantries take place as follows:
- First Monday of the month 3pm-6:30pm at Mother’s Cupboard Community Kitchen (646 Memorial Rd, Nashville). Volunteers would meet at BCHS to load food and return to unload when finished. This pantry takes place outside regardless of weather.
- First Thursday of the month 3:15pm-7:30pm at The Pentecostals of Nashville Church (60 Mt Liberty Road). Volunteers would meet at BCHS to load food and return to unload when finished. This pantry takes place outside regardless of weather.
- First Thursday of the month 3pm-5pm at St. David’s Episcopal Church (11 W State Road 45, Morgantown). Volunteers would meet at St. David’s and no trip to the shelter is required. This pantry is sometimes indoor and sometimes outdoor.
Volunteers help staff our table and interact with community members. When complete, they help to tear down the table and load supplies into the van. Some lifting is required up to 25 pounds. Volunteers are asked to commit to one pantry monthly. Age 18 or older.
If you are interested in any of the opportunities above, please complete an online volunteer application by clicking here.